USA > Pennsylvania > Westmoreland County > History of Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, Vol. II > Part 79
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Peter Whitehead, son of Valentine, and father of the present representa- tive of the family bearing that name, was born in North Huntingdon, Feb- ruary 24, 1796. His entire life was spent at the homestead, which he inher- ited, and he was actively engaged in agricultural pursuits until his death, which occurred May 6, 1867. In local public affairs he was quite prom- inent, serving one term as county commissioner, and in politics he was a Democrat. His religious affiliations were with the Reformed church, of which he was an elder. On October 11, 1813, he married Barbara IIighber- ger, who was born February 18, 1794, daughter of Daniel Highberger, who came originally from Montgomery county. Barbara died November 29, 1834,
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and on January 22, 1837, Peter Whitehead married her sister Catherine. His children, all of his first union, were: Elizabeth, born March 6, 1815: Maria. born September 20, 1816; Simon, born April 1, 1818; Ludwig, born 1820; Anna Catherine, born December 10, 1821 ; John Andrew, born June 21, 1823; Margaret, born November 24, 1824: Lucinda, born November 18, 1826; Sarah, born December 3, 1828; Peter, the date of whose birth will be given presently ; and Rachel Jane, born August 6, 1832. Of these the only one now living is Peter, the principal of this sketch.
Peter Whitehead was born July 21, 1830. Reared upon the farm and educated in the public schools of Huntingdon he has devoted the active period of his life to the cultivation of the homestead property, which he purchased, and like his predecessors has acquired a comfortable prosperity. He is also extensively engaged in the breeding of fine live-stock. As a Democrat he par- ticipates more or less actively in political affairs, and for the years 1890-91-92 served with ability as supervisor. For a period of twenty-five years he has been a trustee of the Brush Creek Reformed Church, and in various other ways has displayed an active interest in the moral and religious welfare of the community. Mr. Whitehead married, October 10, 1853. Sarah Eisman, daugliter of Jacob and Susan Eisman, of Hempfield township. Of this union were born ten children, namely : Alice A., Agnes, married John Kerr, and died June 1, 1903, leaving three children : Clarence, Alexander ( now in the United States navy), and Sarah Jane. William ()., married Alice Gongaware, and resides in Pueblo, Colorado, having one child, Welty. Susan M., married James Seanor, of Ludwig. Edwin G., resides at the homestead. Jacob E., who is the subject of another sketch in this work. Harry W., married Mary Gonga- ware, and resides in Irwin, having four children: Hazel, Walter, James, and Robert. Sadie E. Olive C. B., Laura W.
SOBER FAMILY. The grandfather of George and Andrew Sober, of Leechburg, was George Sober, the descendant of German ancestors and a resident of Northampton county, whence he came in 1798 to Westmoreland county. He purchased three hundred and twenty-five acres of land in Alle- gheny township, and turned his attention to agriculture, having formerly followed the carpenter's trade. His wife was Anna M. Artman, whom he married "on the other side of the mountains," and they were the parents of four children, three daughters and one son; Daniel.
Daniel Sober, son of George and Anna M. ( Artman) Sober, was born in 1798, in Allegheny township, and in course of time inherited the home- stead on which he passed his entire life as a farmer. For some time he held the office of supervisor of the township. He married Elizabeth Spiker, and their children were: John, George, mentioned hereinafter : Daniel, David .. Andrew, also mentioned hereinafter : Christopher, Mary, Elizabeth, Margaret, Sarah, Catharine, and Ann C. All these children were born on the homestead in Allegheny township. George, Daniel and David, during the civil war, served one year in Company K, Sixty-seventh Regiment, Pennsylvania Heavy Artillery, David dying in the service. The death of Mr. Sober, the father, occurred in 1885.
George Sober, one of the two surviving sons of Daniel and Elizabeth ( Spi- ker) Sober, was born June, 1825, and has passed his life as a farmer in his native township. He owns the old farm upon which he was born, having bought out the other heirs. On this estate there is a well of natural gas. The house in which Mr. Sober lives was built in 1848 and is the third dwelling erected on the farm, the first having been a log structure. Until 1866 he was a Demo-
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HISTORY OF WESTMORELAND COUNTY.
crat, but since that year has adhered to the Republican party. He married in 1853, Margaret Moorhead, and their children are: Elizabeth, D. W., John C., Charles F., and Annie. John C. Sober owns the farm in conjunction with his father and attends to the general farming. He married May Marshall, and they have three children : Margaret E., Mary M., and George M.
Andrew Sober, the other surviving son of Daniel and Elizabeth ( Spiker) Sober, was born in 1836, and remained on the homestead until 1876. He has faithfully followed agricultural pursuits, in which he has been remarkably successful, owning a farm of one hundred and twenty-five acres in a high state of cultivation. He has held the offices of school director and tax collector, and like his brother became a Republican in 1866, having previously been a Demo- crat. He is a member of the United Presbyterian church, in which he serves as trustee and treasurer, being in this respect exceptional in his family, the majority of whom are Lutherans. Mr. Sober has been twice married. His first wife was Frances Hill, to whom the following children were born: Israel, deceased : Herman, deceased : David, married Annie Deiffendoffer, and has two children : Mabel and Pear !: Henry, married Maggie Garrett, and had one child ; Craig, married Annie Miller, and has two sons: Clifford and Arthur ; James, married Maggie McGuire, and has three children : Lavinia, Andrew and Filmore : John : Minnie, wife of J. C. Stuart, and mother of two children ; Ma- bel and Frances : Herman (2), married Annie Walters, and has five children : Myrtle, Vernie, Maria, Hazel and Clinton O. Israel, the eldest of the family, left a widow, Martha ( Walters) Sober, and one daughter, Ellen. After the death of his wife Mr. Sober married Catharine Keppel. By this marriage there were no children.
D. W. Sober, son of George and Margaret ( Moorhead ) Sober, was born in 1858, in . Allegheny township, where he was reared and educated. Until his twenty-second year he remained on his father's farm, and then turned his attention to the carpenter's trade, which he followed until 1887. In that year he established himself in the lumber business at Leechburg, remaining there four years. In 1891 he moved his business to Avonmore, and in 1892 formed a partnership with Charles A. Hill and Thomas H. Gough under the firm name of the Hill Lumber Company. The connection is still maintained and the transactions of the firm are extensive. In 1903 Mr. Sober built his present home. He has served eight years on the borough council, and is a member of the Lutheran church, in which he has held many offices of trust and respon- sibility. Mr. Sober married. November 4. 1887, Mary E., daughter of Simon P. and Mary (Shearer) Faulk. The former, who is a prosperous farmer of Allegheny township, was born November 19, 1824. in Armstrong county, and is the descendant of ancestors who served both in the war of 1812 and in the revoultionary struggle. Ilis father was an accomplished scholar and his mother was granddaughter of Daniel Broadhead. This Daniel was a de- scendant of another Daniel Broadhead, who was a captain in the British forces, which, in 1664. took possession of New Amsterdam, which then be- came New York. Andrew J. Faulk, brother of Simon P. Faulk, was governor of Dakota in 1866-69.
SAMUEL BELL. Ireland was the native country of the late Sam- uel Bell, of Bell township. His birth occurred in 1816, and in 1836 he emi- granted to the United States, being the only one of his father's children to seek a home in the New World. He settled near Pittsburg, where he learned the blacksmith's trade and where he remained and worked at his trade for a number of years. Later in life he moved to Mckeesport and subsequently
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HISTORY OF WESTMORELAND COUNTY.
becanie one of the agriculturists of Bell township, where he owned one hun- dred and forty-four acres of valuable farm land. Mr. Bell married in 1855, in Mckeesport, Mary Irwin, and the following children were born to them, three of whom are living: H. G., attorney, married and has three children : James, Verah and Samuel; Charles D., civil engineer ; and Alexander M., farmer on the homestead, married Martha M. Alcorn, and has no children. James, one of the deceased sons, was for eighteen years clerk of the court. In 1892 Mr. Bell closed his long and useful life, being then seventy-six years old.
Mrs. Bell is a daughter of Hezekiah and Harriet (Gamble) Irwin, the former a native of West Newton, Pennsylvania, where he was born in 1808. He was one of the leading farmers of Westmoreland county, owning one hundred and thirty-seven acres in his own name, and in company with his wife having a half-interest in one hundred and thirteen acres more. He and his wife were the parents of ten children, six of whom are living: Mary, born 1831, in West Newton, widow of Samuel Bell; John, Sarah, Martha, Celia, and Hezekiah D., who has been for twenty years clerk in the United States circuit court. Mrs. Irwin was a granddaughter of a member of the Gamble family who in 1756 emigrated from Ireland. His son, John Gamble, was born in 1785, in Westmoreland county, where he was the owner of two hun- dred acres of land, being one of the well-to-do farmers of the period. He married Sarah Doughill, and one of their daughters was Harriet, wife of Hezekiah Irwin. Their other children were: H. D., Samuel H., Elizabeth, James, John, Mary, Olive, and Hiram. All these grew to maturity, the sons filling various offices of trust and responsibility. The Gamble family was represented in the ranks of the revolutionary army and was also distin- guished for patriotism in the civil walks of life.
GARRETT W. DAWSON. Joseph W. Dawson, father of Garrett W. Dawson, of Vandergrift, was born in Chester county, Pennsylvania, and as a young man went to Wilmington, Delaware, where he worked in the mills of the Mccullough Iron Company, having the honor of helping in the manu- facture of the first iron ever drawn from the furnaces in those mills. He has since, for a period of thirty years, remained continuously with the com- pany, and now holds the position of pair heater. He votes with the Republi- cans. Mr. Dawson married Susanna Steele, and ten of their thirteen children are now living: Garrett W., mentioned hereinafter : Harry A., of Wilming- ton, Delaware : Mamie, wife of a Mr. Barber, of Newcastle, Delaware; Wil- liam, also of Wilmington: Norris, Frank, Edward, Lewis, Margaret, and Anna all of whom are likewise residents of Wilmington.
Garrett W. Dawson, son of Joseph W. and Susanna ( Steele) Dawson, was born August 14, 1872, in North East, Maryland, and was educated in the public schools of Wilmington, Delaware. As early as his twelfth year he was errand boy in a wholesale store, and subsequently entered the foundry of the Malleable Iron Company, of Wilmington, where he worked as a core maker, being too young for apprenticeship to the moulder's trade. He was then em- ployed for about six months by the Edgemore Iron Company, of Edgemore, Delaware, after which he accepted the offer of a position in the mills of the Mccullough Iron Company, in Wilmington, remaining with them twelve years. During this time he rose from the lowest place to that of roller and filled nearly every position in the mills because of the advantages offered him and because he took advantage of those opportunities. In 1899 he went to Vandergrift to accept a position with the Apollo Iron & Steel Company.
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HISTORY OF WESTMORELAND COUNTY.
After working for a short time as rougher he was made roller, being given one of the heavy mills. This position he has held for the last six years. He affiliates with Kiskiminetas Lodge, No. 1116, and Encampment No. 284. 1. O. O. F. His political affiliations are with the Republicans. He is a mem- ber of the Methodist Episcopal church, and ever since his arrival in Van- dergrift has served on the official board. He is now president of the Epworth League. Mr. Dawson married, June 20, 1901, Minnie Cochran, of Apollo, two daughters: Eloise Marie, and Martha Larue.
ROBERT HODGSON. The grandfather of Robert Hodgson, of Apollo, was Samuel Hodgson, who emigrated from England with his family and settled in Chartiers township, where he engaged in agricultural pursuits. He was the father of eleven children: Samuel, mentioned hereinafter ; John, and nine daughters.
Samuel Hodgson, son of Samuel Hodgson, the emigrant, for many years successfully carried on the dairy business in partnership with his brother John, and bought a farm of thirty-five acres in Chartiers township. This farm is now a part of the city of Pittsburg. Mr. Hodgson married Matilda McDowel, and their children were: Mary, deceased; Robert, mentioned hereinafter ; Jane, Isabella, Alice, and Joseph, deceased. The mother of these children died in 1856, and her husband survived her many years, passing away in 1890, at the advanced age of eighty-four.
Robert Hodgson, son of Samuel and Matilda (McDowel) Hodgson, was born October 23. 1841, in Chartiers township (now the fifty-ninth ward of Pittsburg), Allegheny county. He was educated in his native place, at the age of nineteen became a teacher, and for twenty-four years thereafter was engaged in educational work. Fifteen years of this time he was an instructor in the public schools of Pittsburg and Allegheny. In 1884 he moved to Arm- strong county, where he engaged in agricultural pursuits until 1897, when he removed to Washington township and purchased his present farm, which he has successfully devoted to the cultivation of fruit. His trees comprise twelve hundred peach, three hundred apple, four hundred plum, two hundred pear and over one hundred cherry, besides all kinds of small fruits. He makes a specialty of the native peach, and has in all one hundred and fifty acres under cultivation. He is a close student, particularly along his chosen line of endeavor. Mr. Hodg- son married, May 27, 1870, Annie M., daughter of James and Mary A. (Berry) Obey, and their children are: Mary A., wife of Harvey Jack, of Kittanning ; Jennie B., wife of E. R. Cypher ; Lulu S., wife of Johnson Broski, of Vander- grift : Robert O., of Pittsburg ; and Edwin S.
WILLIAM HEIMBERGER. The parents of William Heimberger, of Saltsburg, were Philip and Theresa (Huffman) Heimberger, both natives of Germany. Out of their family of six children two emigrated to the United States : William, mentioned hereinafter ; and Frank, who was a cabinetmaker, and was accidentally drowned at Braddock during the high water of 1884.
William Heimberger, son of Philip and Theresa ( Iluffman) Heimberger. was born May 17, 1859. in Baden, Heidelberg, Germany, and was educated in his native country. Early in life he was apprenticed to the machinist's trade, which he mastered to perfection. In obedience to the law of the land which requires every male subject to give three years of his life to military service, he served that length of time in a cavalry regiment. In 1882 he emigrated to the United States, arriving October 3. and settled at Braddock, Pennsylvania, where for three years he worked in a machine shop. Ile next went to Martin's Ferry,
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HISTORY OF WESTMORELAND COUNTY.
Ohio, where he worked at his trade for one year, and then moved to Wheeling, West Virginia, remaining there three years. About this time he became en- gaged in the erection of rolling-mills in various parts of the country, and moved from place to place as necessity demanded. He continued in this business for eight years, but during that time made Duquesne his place of residence. In 1897 he moved to Avonmore and there helped to organize the West Penn Foun- dry & Machine Company, in which he became a stockholder. Since that time he has been in the service of the company. The year of his coming to Avon- more he purchased part of the old Rhea farm, consisting of sixty-two acres. This is one of the old farms of Bell township and was formerly the site of an Indian village. Mr. Heimberger, while ploughing, has turned up many Indian relics which he has preserved and takes pleasure in showing to those interested in these memorials of a by-gone age. Since taking possession of his farm he has greatly improved it, erecting out-buildings and enriching the soil. The dwelling house was built about 1835. With the assistance of his sons he is enabled to manage the farm and at the same time attend to his duties in the machine shop. He and his family are members of the Lutheran church. Mr. Heimberger married, December 20, 1883, while residing at Martin's Ferry, Anna Gerke, a native of that place. Mr. and Mrs. Heimberger have been the parents of the following children : Augusta, Anna, deceased ; Herman, William, Bertha, Edward, and George.
JAMES GARDNER. The family of which James Gardner, of Apollo, is a member is of Irish origin and was planted in this country by Robert Gard- ner who settled in Huntingdon county. He was a farmer and a revolutionary soldier.
Thomas Gardner son of Robert Gardner, was a farmer, but not a land- owner, and served in the war of 1812. In 1824 he moved with his family from Hunterdon county to Westmoreland and settled at Murraysville. His wife was Sarah Scovin, a descendant of Colonel Hand,who was a native of England and during the French and Indian war had charge of Duquesne barracks near Pitts- burg. It was in honor of him that Fort Hand received its name. Mr. and Mrs. Gardner had children : James, mentioned hereinafter ; Samuel, Edward, Rebecca J., John, Martha, Thomas, Elizabeth, Ann, Hannah, Robert and Nancy. Sam- tel and John became tillers of the soil. The latter served during the civil war in Company C, Fourteenth Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, and was wounded. Thomas was a private in Company C, Ninth Regiment, Penn- sylvania Reserves.
James Gardner, son of Thomas and Sarah (Scovin) Gardner, was born May 12, 1824, in Hunterdon county, and the same year was taken by his par- ents to Murrysville, where he received his education. During the civil war he served with the rank of first corporal in Company C, One Hundred and Sixty-eighth Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, and after remaining nearly one year was honorably discharged. Soon after the close of the war he purchased his present farm of sixty-five acres, upon which he erected a house in 1870. His trade was that of a carpenter, which he followed for twenty-six years, building most of the barns in his section of the county. These stand today as monuments of his handwork. At the same time he cultivated his farm, and when his sons grew up turned the land over to them while he plied his trade. he has served his township as supervisor, and is a Republican in politics. His faith is that of the Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Gardner married in 1847, Ann J. Walker, and their children were : Jane, deceased ; Peninah, John, Martha, deceased ; Ellen, deceased ; Kate, Thomas, William O., Elizabeth, Belle and Stephen.
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HISTORY OF WESTMORELAND COUNTY.
HINE FAMILY. The family represented by Jacob MI. Hine, of Apollo, and Thomas D. Hine, of Salina, was planted in Westmoreland county about 1785. The founder was Simon Hine, who was of Dutch parentage and by some thought to be of foreign birth. He came hither from Northampton county, where he had lived some time, and where some of his children were born. He settled first in the neighborhood of Greensburg, but later moved to what is now known as Bell township, where he purchased from the government two hundred acres of land on which he built a log house. He was a blacksmith as were also some of his sons. The iron which they used was carried on horse- back from Pittsburg, a distance of thirty miles. Simon Hine married a Aliss Crissman, and their children, all of whom were born "east of the mountains," were: Jacob, who succeeded his father on the homestead, was a blacksmith, married and had the following children : Peter, Simon, Jacob, Elizabeth, Susan and Hannah ; John, Nicholas, mentioned hereinafter ; Simon, Peter, Catharine, Charlotte, Elizabeth.
Nicholas Hine, son of Simon Hine, was born in Northampton county, and for a number of years successfully followed the blacksmith's trade. He pur- chased two hundred acres of land in Bell township, now the property of his son, Jacob MI. Hine. On this land he erected a substantial stone house, which is now the home of this son. Before his death he became the owner of two hun- dred and fifty acres. He held in the township the offices of supervisor and tax collector. He was a staunch Democrat, and adhered strictly to the tenets of the Lutheran church in which he served as elder and deacon. Mr. Hine married Susanna Cline, and their children were: Mary, Simon, Margaret, Philip, Su- sanna, Charlotte, John, Jacob MI., mentioned hereinafter ; Thmoas D., men- tioned hereinafter : Elizabeth, and three who died in youth. All are deceased, with the exception of Jacob M., Thomas D .. Mrs. Henderson, Mrs. Pugh, and Elizabeth. The death of Mr. Hine occurred about 1865. He was survived for several years by his widow.
Jacob M. Hine, son of Nicholas and Susanna (Cline) Hine, was born De- cember 12, 1835, in Bell township, on the homestead where he has ever since lived and of which he is now the owner. In 1904 he built a barn, which is thus far the largest ever erected in the state of Pennsylvania, in extent eighty-six by one hundred and thirty-four feet, two stories high and capable of accommo- dating one hundred head of horses in addition to other farm stock. The total cost was twelve thousand dollars. Over and above his Bell township property Mr. Hine owns the Hotel Kiskia, in Saltsburg. He has never married.
Thomas D. Hine, son of Nicholas and Susanna (Cline) Hine, was born in 1837, on the homestead, and carly turned his attention to agricultural pursuits. he is the owner of a farm of one hundred acres, formerly the property of Miss S. Buzzard. On this land, since 1871, he has made his home and systematically devoted himself to general farming. Mr. Hine married in 1868, Ella C. Will- iams, and of their seven children four are living: Lizzie. R. J., married .Anna Gughenberger, and is the father of two children ; Lydia W., and Sadie P.
ALCORN FAMILY. The numerous and well-known race of which George E., George A. and Robert N. Alcorn, all of Saltsburg, are represen- tatives, was founded in this country by two brothers, who about the close of the eighteenth century came hither from Donegal, Ireland. They were George and John Alcorn. The former married, in his native country, Nancy Porter, and they brought with them to this country three children: John, Mattie and Jennic. Of this number, John died on the voyage and was buried at sea. They settled in Bell township, where Mr. Alcorn purchased sixty acres of land
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HISTORY OF WESTMORELAND COUNTY.
to which he subsequently added, making in all three hundred acres. The chil- dren born to himself and his wife in their new home were: John (2), men- tioned hereinafter; George, also mentioned hereinafter; and Peggy. Mr. Alcorn, the father, was a staunch Democrat and a Presbyterian. His death occurred in 1830.
George Alcorn, son of George and Nancy ( Porter) Alcorn, was born in Bell township, married, and was the father of four children: William, men- tioned hereinafter ; Hannah, Mary ; and one deceased in youth. In 1854 Mr. Alcorn, the father, built the house now occupied by his grandson, George E. Alcorn.
William Alcorn, son of George Alcorn, was born in 1830, in Bell town- ship, and was the owner of a farm of one hundred and thirty-five acres. He filled creditably several township offices. He married Nancy B. McCauley, born in 1838, in Salem township, and they were the parents of a daughter and a son : Ella J., deceased ; and George E., mentioned hereinafter. Mrs. Alcorn died in 1890, and the death of Mr. Alcorn occurred in 1903.
George E. Alcorn, son of William and Nancy B. '(McCauley) Alcorn, was born in 1860, in Bell township, where he received his education. After spending three years in Pittsburg, working at the carpenter's trade, he re- turned to the homestead, of which he became the owner on the death of his father, and on which he now lives. He has held for some time the office of school director. Mr. Alcorn married in 1886, Anna, daughter of Robert and Jane Alcorn, and they have two sons : Homer and Lawrence.
John Alcorn, son of George and Nancy (Foster) Alcorn, was born Au- gust 1, 1804, in Bell township, and married Keziah Nicholas, born June 25, 1808. The marriage took place in 1832, and their children were: Robert N., mentioned hereinefter; Mary J., born 1835: Nancy, born 1837; Martha M., born 1839 : Hulda K., born 1842; John (twin to Hulda K.), deceased ; Delilah, born 1845 ; and George A., mentioned hereinafter. The father of the family died October 17, 1878, and his widow passed away January 17, 1899, in the ninety-first year of her age.
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